Untitled RSm generator challenge
by Mad Psyence
Summary: Created using the R/SM X-over generator... take a peek?
1. Default Chapter

Standard disclaimers apply.  
  
Generated Theme Song...  
  
The Die Rolled: 5   
A poem from the 18'th century, plus one to all rolls!   
(except relationship, senshi rolls.)   
  
Generated Pretense...  
  
The Die Rolled: 4   
Simple Matchup. The story is simply a cover for WAFF  
  
Generated Entrance...  
  
The Die Rolled: 6   
Setsuna changed time to acquire Ranma's services.  
  
Generated the not-so-important plot...  
  
The Die Rolled: 4   
Saffron related to Beryl!   
They are: Third cousins, once removed, through marriage by a great aunt.  
  
Generated the end-to-fiancees...  
  
The Die Rolled: 4   
I'm hungry, so I'll just skip the fiancee's (mentioned in author's notes).  
  
Generated background information...  
  
The Die Rolled: 3   
Story takes place in Juuban, mostly.  
  
Generated the Main Relationship...  
  
The Die Rolled: 6   
Ranma is related to Sailor Uranus, in this way: Distant Cousins (2nd or 3rd).  
  
Also, Ranma has a romantic relationship with Sailor Moon. (O_O;;)  
The same Senshi is allowed, but it can be tricky.   
  
Generated Plot Twist...  
  
The Die Rolled: 3   
Disgusting interlude about Luna/Artemis, or a Bondage scene between two untaken Senshi and Ranma! (Muwahahah!)  
  
"Earth's Answer" by William Blake  
  
Earth rais'd up her head   
From the darkness dread and drear.  
Her light fled,  
Stony dread!  
And her locks cover'd with grey despair.  
  
"Prison'd on wat'ry shore,  
Starry Jealousy does keep my den:  
Cold and hoar,  
Weeping o'er,  
I hear the Father of the ancient men.  
  
Selfish father of men!  
Cruel, jealous, selfish fear!  
Can delight,  
Chain'd in night,  
The virgins of youth and morning bear?  
  
Does spring hide its joy  
When buds and blossoms grow?  
Does the sower  
Sow by night,  
Or the plowman in darkness plow?  
  
Break this heavy chain  
That does freeze my bones around.  
Selfish! vain!  
Eternal bane!  
That free Love with bondage bound."   
  
  
  
  
Damn that bitch! That insufferable incompetent bitch. Saffron hovered nervously running a hand through his hair his wings shivered with tension. Even with the power he had given her, deprived his people of to help her, she was failing. Spectacularly failing. If her blood was not being spilled at this very moment, he would seek it himself.  
  
Family be damned.   
  
Focus, he raged at himself, this is no time for lost causes. He eyed the human before him and again cursed his cousin. None of this would have happened if he had not tried to rush the ritual. All to help her. He was foolish and his people's home was paying the price.   
  
If he had been in his right mind he would never have consented his power. If he had not been so young when the plea from Beryl arrived... If he had been an adult, or older at the least, he would have crushed the messenger under his foot and spit on the remains. If he had only remembered!   
  
His rise to power was flawed. It seemed such a small flaw. He didn't remember, that was the problem. He had lived over and over. Reborn into this world a thousand times over to rule the Phoenix people, and each time he forgot more and more of his beginnings. Fragments of his first lives where only an annoying mist; cruel snippets of emotion along the edges of his mind - a blurred image, a flash of color, a scent.   
  
He cried out in rage as the human boy sliced through his wing. He remembered....  
  
  
  
  
.....The night was cold and the moon was beautiful like it always was. The halo of silver light hung gently in the sky. He was unsettled. The moon was peaceful, a kingdom of happiness and united under a fair ruler. On clear nights Saffron always found himself on this very balcony staring into the sky.   
  
It was strange really. He felt he should be happy for that kingdom in the sky. It was everything that he wanted for his own people; peace, happiness, and health. Why, then, did he feel flashes of disgust? Queen Serenity provided everything her people wanted: security. She had calmed the fears of the peasants upon her ascension to the thrown and brought about the great unity.  
  
Was that it then? Was he misreading himself? Was he jealous? What a ridiculous thought, he scoffed at himself. What did it all matter? He shook his head. Why bother contemplating such matters of irrelevance. The Earth was not yet part of the alliance and by the state of things in the major royal courts of Earth it was not likely to come about for a long time.   
  
A slim hand on his shoulder roused Saffron from his thoughts. He didn't turn his gaze from the skies.  
  
"Ah, dear cousin. I knew I would find you here." Beryl chittered a little laugh. "You are like clockwork."  
  
His lips curled into a smirk despite himself. He snorted.  
  
"Why do you keep pestering me, Beryl? 'Dear cousin,' indeed. The answer is still no. I have no intention of changing it. You are on a fool's mission. You seek nothing but disaster, girl." he said.  
  
Beryl's mouth opened and closed in outrage. "How dare you, you pompous ass! You have yet to hear me out and already you refuse? I came to ask your favor in exchange for -"  
  
"- I've heard you time and time again and nothing has changed! What right do you have to ask me for such things, for such favors? Can you do nothing for yourself! You seek a throne too far beyond your reach! You could never hope to -"   
  
"- It's different now!" Beryl bristled. "The situation has changed! Metallia has granted me an unimaginable boon! And with Kunzite it is only a matter of time before the rest see my views. If you join with me, we will be unstoppable. I am prepared to offer you a tidy reward and land. It would be for the good of your people! For all the people!"   
  
Saffron turned, his hair whipping into his eyes. He brushed it aside and glared at the woman in front of him. "Get out of my sight." It was as simple as that. His sharp tone left no room for argument and promised pain if even a sound was uttered.  
  
Beryl straightened, a glare firmly in place. Her hands were clenched into white knuckled fists and she turned sharply on her heel and strode from his chambers. It didn't matter. His help would have made it a little easier on her troops, but wasn't a necessity. She shook her head, sending her red hair into a frenzy. His short sightedness would be his kingdom's downfall.   
  
  
The night passed into day and then into weeks. Reports came to him of tensions and fears among the Endymion lines. They worried him. Not only Kunzite, but now Zoisite had turned. The rumors were flying fast, each one more horrible than the last.   
  
King Endymion was accusing him for the betrayals. War ready troops had been seen camping at the boarders to the Phoenix lands. Their campfires twinkled like a sea of earth bound stars at night.   
  
Saffron had ordered his people be ready. He had arranged talks with Prince Endymion. If he could not speak to the king directly, then he would work through his son.  
  
So he sat and waited for the Prince to show. He had promised safe passage for Prince Endymion and his guards on the Phoenix lands for this series of meetings. Any mistakes now would only provoke violence on the strained relations.  
  
"Your highness," a skinny nameless servant bowed before him. "Prince Endymion is here; shall I send him in?"  
  
Saffron nodded and the servant scrambled out. He approached the mahogany table in the middle of the room. It was a large decadent room used exclusively for receiving guest of high importance. The marble floors gleamed, freshly cleaned. The rice screens where opened to allow a wonderful view of the valleys and hills below the mountain palace and the sunshine spilled in thickly on the richly decorated walls. Each generation's top artist was hired to add fine detail to the room. On the south wall there was an elegant painting of a rising phoenix, its wings spread, head thrown back in a triumphant cry, the flames around it were actual gold.   
  
It was an impressive room indeed. Fit for royalty.  
  
The dark wooden doors opened and he tensed. Endymion entered confidently, two of his personal guard with him and a handful of elite soldiers a few feet behind. He was dressed in his formal armor, his sword hung primly from his side.   
  
He was the picture of inexperience in Saffron's opinion. He felt himself relax, this would be better than he thought. He offered the young man a friendly smile as he approached. "Welcome to my home. Please be at ease."  
  
The winged man smiled a little more as Endymion nodded his thanks and dismissed the elite to wait outside. He was happy that he had decided before the Prince's arrival against having his own guards present. It was a risky decision he knew, but he felt their presence would have promoted hostilities.   
  
The Prince approached the King of the Phoenix with hand extended. They grasped hands firmly.  
  
Saffron gasped in pain and staggered back. His hand darted to his neck and came away bloodied. His eyes locked with Endymion.  
  
Endymion stared stony faced. In his left hand a dagger he had pulled from the sleeve of his right. His jaw firmed and he stepped forward to finish....  
  
  
  
  
  
...... He threw his head back in rage. His first death wrought by a mortal so long ago. How could he have let that happen? So humiliating... Never again would he fail like that. Never!  
  
He brought his hands in front of him and gathered his fires into the most powerful blast he could muster. This landling would pay for the sins of his brothers. They had tried to destroy him, destroy them all.  
  
He growled and released his attack at the pig-tailed boy. Then all was white.  
  
  
Beryl screamed in pain as the white power of the Moon Kingdom impacted with her body. Then all was white.  
  
  
  
------ possible scene from Chapter 1---   
  
Sailor Pluto leaned on her staff dozing before the Time Gate. She was exhausted from hours of watching and fretting over the battle between Beryl and the senshi. They won in the end. It had cost them all dearly, but victory was all that mattered.   
  
She sighed and more of her weight leaned on the staff. She could finally relax for a little while. It was a nice feeling.   
  
Skrii... Skriik.. The staff slid a little along the polished floor before giving way under Setsuna's weight. She and the staff crashed to the ground. The garnet rod bounced...right into the surface of the Time Gate. A ripple formed and spread like a pebble hitting the surface of a pond.   
  
The Senshi of Time stared. Oh shit.   
  
----   
  
okay.. what do you think? C&C please.. _ No one ever C&Cs my writing.. am I not worthy of even a little flame? hehe.  
Title suggestions very welcome. 


	2. chapter 2

okay... chapter 2.. my chapters seem so short. hn. Still no title I know.  
People seem really tense about the plot twist bit. lol...  
Okay, time line note - 2 years have passed.  
  
  
  
  
Two years had passed. Battles were fought, wars were won and time marched resolutely on. That was the problem.   
  
No matter how Setsuna looked at it, a minute always contained 60 seconds. A decade always held 10 years. She could contort time, even manipulate it in a sense, but she couldn't really control it. She could halt all action of a person or persons, but time still moved forward. She was a rock thrown in a stream. Time simply flowed around her eventually.   
  
She had been searching for two years. She had followed the ripple out as far as she could and found nothing. Just an ever widening ripple. There was no notable change.   
  
Setsuna pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. This was impossible. No wave was silent, yet this one seemed to be. She had a dreadful feeling that if she were to turn her back she would be swept out to sea.   
  
Maybe she was being paranoid. She didn't even know what she was looking for. The change could have been anything. Anything at all.   
  
Sailor Pluto growled. She hated maybes.  
  
  
  
Minako ran through the front door, book bag in hand and up the stairs to her room. Her door closed with a slam, bag met bed. She was late. Oh, so late, she was. It wasn't her fault that she didn't pay attention in class...okay so maybe it was, but how did detention help that after the fact? Where was the logic?  
  
She scrambled to remove her school uniform and put on a pair of khaki shorts followed by an orange T-shirt. As a finishing touch she grabbed her translucent long sleeve black button up blouse and shrugged it on.   
  
"How do I look, Artemis?" Minako spun once in front of her closet mirror and nodded in satisfaction. It wasn't super glamorous, but it would do in a pinch.  
  
The room echoed in silence.  
  
"Artemis?" Still no reply. That's odd, she thought. Now that I think of it, I haven't seen him since this morning.   
Figures, never around when she needed him.  
  
Minako left her room at a more sedate pace than she had entered it in. She glanced at her watch. She was already late, taking a few minutes to locate the fur ball wasn't going to change that for the better.  
  
The blonde girl shook her head. She'd start by looking in the kitchen. If there was food, there was Artemis.   
  
She crept into the kitchen intent on her prey. Minako sidled along the wall, her eyes scanning for a trace of white.   
  
"Mina-chan, what are you doing?"  
  
"Gah!" She jumped, startled. "Mom, don't do that!" She clutched her chest, heart racing and eyes wild.  
  
"Do what, dear?" Mrs. Aino said sweetly.  
  
"..." Minako said. "Uh, never mind. You haven't seen Artemis by any chance, have you?"  
  
Mrs. Aino hefted her grocery bags onto the counter and began to unload them. "I swear you are so absent minded sometimes Mina-chan. I told you last night, remember?"  
  
Minako fidgeted. "Remember what?" She blinked.  
  
"I took Artemis to the vet this afternoon. He has an appointment to be neutered first thing tomorrow morning."  
  
"What!" Mina shrieked in horror. "You what?!"  
  
"We discussed this already. I don't like the thought of being responsible for kittens, Minako. You've seen the way he and Usagi's cat get along... And he may not spray now, but that doesn't mean he won't." Mrs. Aino paused to give her daughter a 'don't you argue with me'look.  
"He'll be fine. You'll see. And he'll thank you for it later."  
  
Minako continued to look horrified. "That's what I'm worried about," she muttered. Louder she continued. "Alright then. Uh.. I promised I'd meet some friends after school. Okay, bye!" And with that she turned and fled, pausing to slip on some tennis shoes, she bolted out of the house. She had to get to Artemis before the vet did or she was dead! Luna would never forgive her, neither would Artemis for that matter.  
  
Failure was not an option!  
  
  
  
Ranma sat in the dojo. Nothing special about it. He just sat and stared. He'd been doing a lot of that lately. It would start out as meditation then buckle and collapse on itself until all that remained was mindless staring.   
  
He found himself lost in the sound of his blood rushing through his veins and the hypnotic rhythm of his own breathing. Thoughts floated loftily on the currents of his mind and once in a while he'd hook one for further contemplation.  
  
Not much had changed since they arrived back from China almost two years ago. Truthfully he hadn't expected it to. In his life he had learned not to expect anything at all.   
  
He had managed to make it to his senior year of high school, surprising everyone except himself. Ranma felt a little insulted at that. After all, they should know that once he set a goal for himself he attained it or died trying.   
  
In fact graduation had come and gone with little fan fare on his part. The Tendos had held a graduation party and a couple days after Soun and Genma had tried to hold a graduation wedding. Ranma had found a fool proof way of dealing with such things; don't show up. It was quite a simple plan and worked better than any other plan he had tried. Couldn't marry someone that wasn't there.   
  
Ranma's head drooped, his chin coming to rest against his chest and he dreamed....  
  
....The sun glared down harshly on the gardens and he brought his hand up to shield his eyes. She was late but he would wait forever if need be. He would wait an eternity to see her smile, to feel her soft skin beneath his hands, to taste her perfect lips one more time.  
  
There was nothing more painful than love. Nothing so gripping and all consuming. It was warm and safe and frighteningly wonderful. It made him want to laugh and cry and rage and scream all at once. There was nothing better than this.  
  
And there was nothing that scared him more.   
  
A gentle breeze brought the sound of bells to him and he turned to the noise. She had arrived. He felt his heart flutter in his chest at the sight of her.  
Each of her steps was accented by the jingle of silver jewelry dangling about her delicate ankles. He rushed to her and enveloped her in his arms, murmuring his fears in her ear. He thought she had forgotten, that she wouldn't come, that she hated him..  
  
She silenced him with a finger to his lips and giggled sweetly. It was alright. She was here now. She could never hate him, didn't he know she loved him?  
  
Love? Love! She had said love! He felt tears gather in his eyes. She had said love.   
  
Oh gods...love. She had finally said what he desperately wanted to hear and dreaded more than anything. Yes, love.  
  
He kissed her then, deeply and with as much passion as he could; stealing the breath from them both.  
  
If nothing else, heavens above, let me have this one moment, he thought. This one thing is all I ask. I want her.  
  
They sank together into the long grass and flowers. Content in the warmth of each other and the taste of lip on lip.  
His hands ran through her hair and over her shoulders.  
  
He paused to whisper his love, how he had waited, all that mattered in the world to him was within his arms at that very moment. Nothing could change that.  
Her eyes glimmered with tears of happiness and she pushed him onto his back in twinkling laughter.  
  
They were together for now. Her soft creamy skin on his, hot breath mingled with hot breath. They were one and that was all that mattered in the world to them....  
  
  
The dojo doors slid open with a muted click. Kasumi stepped in quietly, a gentle smile on her face. Ranma was dozing in the dojo again. She had found him like this on more than one occasion. She wondered if he was getting enough sleep, this didn't seem normal.  
  
Pushing such thoughts aside she approached carefully. It was never good to startle a sleeping martial artist, after all.  
  
"Ranma-kun?" Kasumi knelt down in front of him. Slowly her hand touch his shoulder.   
  
He jolted awake. His hand came up and captured Kasumi's in a vice like grip.  
Kasumi's breath caught in her throat. She thought for sure that she would find herself thrown against the wall.  
  
Ranma blinked and blinked again. Funny, he didn't remember falling asleep. He released Kasumi with a nervous chuckle. "Sorry about that, Kasumi."   
  
The eldest Tendo daughter smiled. "That's alright. Here, Ranma-kun, this came for you in the mail." She reached into her apron pocket and withdrew a simple white envelope. "I'm sorry to wake you, but I thought it might be important."  
  
"Thank you, Kasumi-san." Ranma took the envelope and tore it open. With his luck it would probably be a challenge or something...   
  
Kasumi sat, quietly watching his facial expression go from tired to excited. "You look excited. What does it say, Ranma-kun?"  
  
Ranma jumped up from his seated position. His mouth moved soundlessly for a minute before he managed, "I got in! I got in!"  
  
"Got in what?" Kasumi blinked a bit taken aback at his out burst.  
  
Ranma grinned. "Minato University!" he said triumphantly.  
  
------  
  
Minato University is not real. _  
Please C&C! ;.; 


	3. chapter 3

Dinner that evening at the Tendo's was a quiet affair. The tension in the air was palpable and wrapped about the residence like a soggy blanket.  
  
Ranma's 'good news' hadn't gone over as well as he had hoped it would; not that he expected any praise. He was proud. Imagine, him, a college freshman - something he dared not even dream of on his journey with his father.  
  
The news had brought expected reactions as well as a few unexpected.  
  
Soun sat in, what seemed, silent shock for a minute before a frown settled on his face like a sinking ship on the ocean floor. He leaned back from the table and grumbled to himself a bit. So, Ranma applied for university and more astonishing than that - he got in.  
  
This would require some thought. Genma and he couldn't just allow the boy to leave. He had responsibilities to Akane and the dojo and -more importantly- to protect them from the master! He shivered a little in fear.  
  
Genma had much the same thoughts as Soun. Deep down in the convoluted workings of his being - much like a motor way round-a-bout - was a spark of pride for his child, not that he'd ever voice it.  
  
Nabiki was surprisingly supportive of the whole thing. Why, Ranma wasn't sure. The middle Tendo daughter always had her own motives that didn't usually consist of good cheer in Ranma's experience.  
  
Kasumi was pleasantly surprised that Ranma had opted to continue his educational endeavours. She was a little disappointed that he hadn't applied to the same university as her younger sisters though. She hoped it wouldn't strain his and Akane's relationship. That wouldn't do at all.  
  
Akane barely acknowledged it at all, content as she was knowing that the Earth was her own personal satellite.* She smiled smugly. He's never last. There was no way Ranma could best her at scholastics.  
  
Nodoka broke the silence first. "Ranma," she said, her voice like tempered steel. "Are you absolutely sure this is what you want?"  
  
Ranma paused chop sticks halfway to his mouth. Had he heard right? Was someone asking what *he* wanted? He placed his utensils down and cleared his throat. "Yeah..I've...uh...thought about it a lot-"  
  
Akane snorted.  
  
"- actually.." he trailed and fidgetted nervously with his pig-tail. "I - I want ta go."  
  
The Saotome matriarch eyed her son sternly. "You do know what this means, do you not?"  
  
Her only child child gulped and squirmed under her gaze. "Uh... no?"  
  
"It means... I'm so proud of you!" Nodoka gushed wiping a joyous tear from her eye.  
  
Ranma almost found himself planted face first in his plate; the victim of his own surprise.He hadn't expected that.  
"Of course there is the matter of finances." Nodoka continued, "I've been saving for this occasion since you were born. You'll still have to apply for a loan, but I'm sure your father will gladly get a job to help you pay for living expenses, isn't that right, husband dear?" She smiled sweetly at Genma.  
  
Genma twitched. Where was cold water when you needed it? He grinned sickly at his wife. "Certainly, No-chan." He cast a quick glare at his son. Damn that child; nothing but work since his first breath of air.  
The moon's silver fingers traced the landscape of Tokyo and delighted in the warm buzz of neon. It brushed over the building tops and paused to push aside the curtains of Chiba Mamorus's window.  
  
The young man lied in bed drifting somewhere between the realms of sleep and waking.  
  
Tucked securely in the night stand drawer by his bed were four stones; kunzite, zoisite, nephrite, and jedite. No ordinary stones, were these. They were all that was left of generals from a millennium steeped in silver. The only physical evidence of the fours mens' existence, and only that if you knew the story behind them. There were also a gateway for restless spirits, however minuscule.  
  
The stones glowed softly in their prison.   
  
Four ghostly apparitions crowded around Mamoru's resting form. The air was vibrating with clarified memories and intense grief..  
  
The group watched over the prince of a dead kingdom as he dreamed. His dream was saturated with anger and tasted bitter with betrayal; a strange coppery tang that invaded and strangled the senses.  
  
Mamoru thrashed violently for a moment and then stilled as his subconscious mind asserted itself and paralysed his body. There would be no escape from the dreamscape this time. It would have its say at last...  
  
....The halls of the building were tall and extravagant. They practically bled with age and the souls of the people before him. The ceiling arched high overhead and the walls proudly bore the images of those long gone. The lush curtains hung over the rain streaked windows; rivers of velvet terminating in pools on the mahogany floors.  
  
Heels met polished wood with click after click. Mamoru turned abruptly, startled at the sound. It had appeared suddenly, lacking the subtle lead in of normal approaching sounds.  
  
Two young men paused a short distance from him.  
  
"I just don't see the problem." The taller of the pair said in a frustrated voice. He wore a loose long sleeve silver shirt with lace up ties that extended from elbow to wrist. His hair was cropped at the name of his neck, bangs left slightly longer to caress his cheeks and jaw line. The ebony tresses framed a porcelain face and icy blue eyes that seemed almost like fire opal.  
  
"The people are anxious, brother. And the members of the court are talking-...but what are words in the face of blood?" The smaller man said with a sly grin. He was of delicate build - his button up shirt fit nicely over his chest and thin waist. His black hair was shorter than his brother's. His bangs were also short and fluffed over his forehead. His eyes were glossy amber brown.  
  
How Mamoru knew these details from his distance, he wasn't sure. It was almost like he was standing next to them or...was them, oddly enough.  
  
"Wh - What are they saying?" The tall one asked.  
  
"Forget it. It's not important what they say. Let them talk-"  
  
"No!" Tall all but shouted. "No, tell me. It *is* important and you damn well know it."  
  
"As you wish, brother." Small sighed dramatically. "There is talk, brother. They say you have taken up with that Lunarian whore," he paused, a look of disdain crossing his face. "There are rumours. Such awful rumours, that you would give our kingdom for her kiss. Rubbish, isn't it?"  
  
Mamoru watched as Tall's face paled and creased into a worried frown.  
  
Small noticed too. "It is all just talk, isn't it?" He received no answer. Small placed himself in Tall's path and grasped his shoulders. "Answer me, damn you!" he said desperately.  
  
Tall couldn't meet his brother's gaze. "I'm ... I'm sorry," he managed after a tense moment. "Please, don't tell father."  
  
"I'm sorry...? I'm sorry!?'' Small mocked angrily. "Don't tell father? Is that all you can say?" By now he was shrieking. Mamoru could hear the panic in his voice, and then the sound of flesh impacting flesh as Small physically expressed his outrage.  
  
Tall straightened slowly, gasping for breath. "Brother, I-"  
  
"-Don't you 'brother' me. How could you? What of this kingdom? We refuse the alliance. We will never be part of it! What of the house of Endymion? Would you dirty it so willingly with the touch of that filth?"  
  
"She is not filth!" Tall growled.  
"Listen to yourself. She has twisted you. Can't you see the Lunarians are using you to add us to their conquests?"  
  
"No! No, it's not like that. She loves me and I her-"  
  
"-Shut up!" Small shouted.  
  
"Brother, listen to -"  
  
"I have no brother!" Small spat on Tall's boot, turned and left the hall without a backward glance...  
  
...Mamoru woke feeling disoriented. What the hell was that about? He lied there for a moment confused. His alarm clock read 9:08PM. He hadn't meant to nap that long. He got up and stretched, filing the strange dream away for later. He has homework to do.  
The Hikawa temple was filled with the laughter of teenage girls. The air of the old hose came alive with an aura of completeness. Everything was as it should be in the world because inside this structure warriors and protectors from life times ago were united.  
  
"-I just couldn't believe it. You should have seen the look on Artemis' face!" Minako broke into a gale of laughter as did her audience.  
  
Artemis sulked. "It wasn't that funny!" he whined. "I almost lost my di-"  
  
"-But you didn't because the wonderful, beautiful, and heroic Minako Aino rescued you from the clutches of evil!" Minako declared dramatically.  
  
"You're the reason I was in trouble to begin with!" the white cat's tail twitched in annoyance.  
  
Minako placed her hands on her hips. "Isn't that a case of the black pot calling itself a kettle," she said.  
  
There was a collective groan from the other girls.  
  
"So," Makoto began, "is there any reason for this meeting or is this just a social call?"  
  
Usagi had asked them all to gather at the shrine. It was the first meeting they had had in two months, since the defeat of Galaxia. They had seen each other since then, they were too closely knit not to, but it was always for study or some fun activity.  
  
Ami looked up from the notes she was taking from a book on engineering. "Yes, Usagi. What's bothering you? You seem a bit down tonight."  
  
The blonde in question examined the table top, trying to convert emotion to words. "Rei," she said after a moment, "did you do a fire reading like I asked?" She looked at the priestess with hope in her eyes.  
  
Rei leaned back from the low table and shifted uncomfortable under Usagi's hopeful gaze.  
  
"You asked Rei to do a fire reading without telling me?" Luna asking in a hurt tone. "Usagi, you know you can come to me with your problems anytime."  
  
"I know Luna. It's just...." her voice trailed uncertainly. "It's just I'm not sure there is a problem. I've been having this weird feeling that something's really wrong, off somehow."  
  
Luna jumped onto the table and sat before her young charge. "Don't be silly. Everything's going as planned and soon you and Mamoru will be married and crowned King and Queen. You're probably just anxious."  
  
Usagi gave the black cat a flat stare before turning her attention back to Rei.  
  
"You're just being paranoid. I did the reading. I didn't see anything concerning," said Rei. "The only thing I saw at all was a Phoenix rising from the flame, which I'm pretty sure represented us and a dagger for some reason. And that was only after hours of meditation."  
  
The moon princess frowned. "I see..."  
  
"Ah, come on Usagi, cheer up." Makoto smiled. "I'm sure you'll figure it out sooner or later. Until then don't dwell on it too much."  
  
Usagi smiled weakly. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I hope you're right.." 


End file.
